Movies and Theaters in San José and Other Areas

There are movie theaters all over the San José area and in other large cities. Most of these theaters show first-run movies usually within a month after they first are released in the United States. Ticos are moviegoers. Last year more than 3.5 million tickets were sold in Costa Rica.

The Sala Garbo shows first-rate independent films with Spanish subtitles. About 40 percent of all current hit movies shown in the United States make their way to Costa Rica sooner or later. You should not worry about understanding these movies since they are all in English with Spanish, subtitles except movies for children, which are usually dubbed. You can read the local newspapers to see what movies are currently playing. At present, admission costs about $3. Several theaters have more than one screen. To find out what is playing look in The Tico Times or any of the Spanish-language newspapers such as La Nación. Information about movies may also be accessed at http://www. entretenimiento.co.cr (in Spanish).

In the Central Valley, you can experience everything from old-time Paramount-style theater palaces to ultra-modern movie complexes in suburban malls. The Cine Variedades, up the street from the Plaza de la Cultura, is one of the oldest. The Cine Magaly in Barrio La California, is a great theater for that old-time big-movie experience. It has more than 1,000 seats and second-story balconies.

Movies in English are Shown Here

The parent company of the Magaly runs other movie theaters in the country. Cadena de Cines Magaly, or CCM, is the country's largest chain with 42 screening rooms located all over the country. They receive about 50 percent of the country's movie viewers.

The Magaly theater chain has a movie theater with three screens on the third floor of the new Outlet Mall in San Pedro. These theaters show nontraditional foreign films and have state-of-the-art DTS Digital and Dolby sound systems. You can purchase and reserve tickets by telephone with a credit card. The Magaly movie chain also recently opened several movie theaters at Mall Internacional in Alajuela, the Paseo de las Flores and Real Cariari shopping centers in Heredia, in Plaza San Carlos and Plaza Liberia in Guanacaste.

In the 1980s there were about 125 independent movie theaters in the country. Today there are 80 theaters with 73 belonging to three major chains and found exclusively in large shopping malls.

The first of Costa Rica's megatheaters was built in the San Pedro Mall. It has five-screens and is located on the second floor of the mall. The opening of this theater complex started a new trend of multiple movie screens located in shopping malls. The idea was to use the movie theaters to draw large numbers of people to the malls.

The Real Cariari shopping center boasts a six-screen movie theater. Cinemark is a U.S.-style movie theater with eight screens at the Multiplaza mall, in Escazú. This theater boasts a -top-quality digital sound system and tiered seating . It is one of the best places to see a movie in the country, and serves snacks and candies from the United States and even hot buttered popcorn with real butter and free refills if you purchase the large size. Cinépolis at the new Terramall, on the highway to Cartago also has a state- of-the-art theater. It boasts 15 movie screens, three of which have VIP rooms with luxurious seats and George Lucas'THX technology.

San José is purported to have more theaters and theater companies per capita than any other city in the world. Most live plays are in Spanish but there are occasional plays in English at the Costa Rican-North American Cultural Center. The Little Theatre Group is Costa Rica's oldest English-language acting troupe and frequently presents plays in English. However, by going to plays in Spanish, you can improve your language skills. Current plays are listed in the activities section of local newspapers.

Movies (Cines)

Cinépolis ................................................................................. 278-3506 Terramall
Cine Cariari (six screens) ......................................................... 293-3300 Plaza Real Cariari, across from the Hotel Herradura
Cine Colonial 1 and 2 (two screens) ........................................ 289-9000 Centro Comercial Plaza Colonial, Escazú
Cine Magaly ............................................................................ 223-0085 Calle 23, Ave. Central/1 Barrio La California
Cine El Semáforo (alterntive movies) ...................................... 253-9126 San Pedro
Cinemark (eight screens) ......................................................... 288-1111 Multiplaza, Escazú
Cinemark (eight screens) ......................................................... 224-8383 Multiplaza del Este, Zapote
Cine Variedades....................................................................... 222-6104 Ave. Central/1, Calle 5
El Observatorio....................................................................... 223-0725 Calle 23, Ave. Central
Internacional (four screens) ..................................................... 442-6100 Mall Internacional, Alajuela
Laurence Olivier...................................................................... 222-1034 Ave. 2, Calle 28
Liberia .................................................................................... 223-0085 Guanacaste
Multicines ............................................................................... 234-8868 San Pedro across from la Plaza Roosevelt and Kennedy Park
Multicines ............................................................................... 592-3133 Cartago at Mall Paraíso
Multicines ............................................................................... 665-1515 Liberia
Multiplex................................................................................. 460-6733 San Carlos
Pérez Zeledón ......................................................................... 772-8780 San Isidro
Plaza Mayor 1-2 (two screens)................................................. 232-3271 Main Road, Rohrmoser
Plaza Occidente ....................................................................... 447-7120 San Ramón
Sala Garbo .............................................................................. 222-1034 Ave. 2, Calle 28, 100 meters south of Pizza Hut Paseo Colón
San Carlos ............................................................................... 480-9202
San Pedro Mall (five screens) ................................................... 221-6272 Mall San Pedro
Cinematec ............................................................................... 207-5732 Auditorium of the School of General Studies, UCR
Cine Universitario ................................................................... 207-4271 At the UC. Law School Auditorium
Cine en el Campus, Teatro Centro de Arte del CIDEA, Universidad Nacional, 200 meters north of McDonald's, Heredia

Theaters (Teatros) in and around San José

Teatro de Esquina.................................................................... 257-0223 100 meters south of the old Atlantic Train Station
Teatro Laurence Olivier .......................................................... 222-1034 Ave. 2, Calle 28
Teatro Arlequín ....................................................................... 222-0792 Calle 13, Ave. Central
Teatro del Angel ...................................................................... 222-8258 Ave. Central & Plaza de la Democracia
Teatro Melico Salazar .............................................................. 221-4952 Ave. 2, Calle Central
Teatro de La Aduana ............................................................... 223-4563 Calle 25, Ave. 3/ 5
Teatro Capra ........................................................................... 234-2866 Calles 29/33, Ave. 1
Teatro Chaplin ........................................................................ 223-2919 Paseo de los Estudiantes
Teatro Máscara ........................................................................ 255-4250 Calle 13, Ave. 2/4
Teatro Nacional....................................................................... 221-5341 Ave. 2, Calles 3/5
Teatro Giratablas ..................................................................... 253-6001 Diagonal to Kentucky Fried Chicken on the road to San Pedro
Teatro Tiempo......................................................................... 222-0792 Ave. Central/2, Calle 13
Teatro Eugene O'Neill............................................................. 253-5527 IN the Costa Rican-North American Cultural Center, Barrio Dent